Mother Found Not Guilty After 20 Years in Prison for Killing Four Children

Scientists: "Sudden Death Gene in Children's Bodies"
Compensation for Damage Expected to Surpass All-Time High

An Australian woman who was imprisoned for 20 years on the grounds of having caused the deaths of her four children has been acquitted and restored her honor. She plans to seek compensation from the government for the time she was wrongfully incarcerated.

Kathleen Polvig wiping tears.
Photo by Yonhap News

According to reports from major media on the 15th (local time), the New South Wales Court of Appeal overturned the original verdict against Kathleen Folbigg, who had been convicted of murder and other charges, stating that it is possible the children died of natural causes, and acquitted her.

Folbigg was sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2003 for killing three of her four children and causing the death of one by negligence over a period of about ten years starting in 1989.

The deaths occurred in the following order: first son Caleb in 1989, Patrick in 1991, Sarah in 1993, and Laura in 1999. Initially, the children were believed to have died from sudden infant death syndrome.

However, a forensic pathologist judged Laura's cause of death as "unidentified," which led to a police investigation. Folbigg maintained that her children died of natural causes, but the prosecution argued that she had suffocated them.

No physical evidence was presented proving Folbigg killed the children, but her diary, which showed signs of psychological instability, was admitted as decisive evidence in the trial. At that time, the jury concluded that it was highly unlikely all four children died of natural causes.

Genetic Mutation Causing Sudden Death Found in Deceased Children... Conviction Overturned

Deceased children of Polvig.
[Photo by 9news]

At the time, the media labeled Folbigg as "Australia's worst female serial killer." However, in 2021, scientists discovered a genetic mutation capable of causing sudden death in two of the deceased daughters, and 90 scientists, medical workers, and experts submitted a petition calling for reinvestigation.

The New South Wales government entrusted retired judge Tom Bathurst with the reinvestigation, and he concluded that unexplained medical conditions were found in the deceased children, suggesting their deaths could have been natural and that the guilty verdict might have been incorrect.

Accordingly, New South Wales pardoned Folbigg in June. Immediately after her release, Folbigg filed for a retrial at the Court of Appeal and ultimately had her conviction overturned.

Folbigg said, "I am grateful to finally know the answer to how my children died through the latest science," adding, "The legal system preferred to blame me rather than consider that children could die unexpectedly."

She also added, "I hope no one else suffers as I have."

Folbigg's lawyer stated that she will seek substantial compensation for the time she was wrongfully imprisoned. The exact amount of the claim has not yet been disclosed.

Australian media noted that the largest compensation case in Australian history was that of David Eastman, who was imprisoned for 19 years on murder charges and acquitted in a 2018 retrial, receiving 7.02 million Australian dollars (about 6.1 billion KRW) from the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) government, and predicted that Folbigg's compensation would surpass this amount.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.